Vietnam's hydropower dam fined $5,200 for deadly water discharge

Water discharged at Ho Ho, a hydropower plant in Ha Tinh Province. Photo by VnExpress/Duc Hung

The large amount of water together with heavy rain was blamed for severe flooding that killed 9 in central Vietnam last month.

A hydropower dam which discharged a large amount of water without any advance notice and caused flooding in the central province of Ha Tinh last month has been fined VND115.5 million, or nearly $5,200.

The flood, also partly blamed on torrential rains the night of October 15, drowned 5,000 houses and killed nine people.

Inspectors said Ho Ho Hydropower had violated safety rules when releasing between 500-1,800 cubic meters a second, despite heavy rain. Locals were not informed of the discharge and did not anticipate the deadly flows of water.

It is not the first time a hydropower plant had been blamed for devastating flash floods in Vietnam, especially in the central region.

In 2009, A Vuong hydropower dam in the central province of Quang Nam released 150 million cubic meters of water during Typhoon Ketsana, worsening flooding that killed at least 163 people and caused over $786 million worth of damage.

In 2013, water discharged from nine hydropower dams was blamed for aggravating flooding triggered by a tropical depression. The central region recorded 41 deaths.